Refrigerator car floor rack



Dec. 6, 1938.

V. E; SISSON REFRIGERATQR CAR FLOOR RACK Filed June 1'7, 1937 Patented Dec. 6, 1938 UNITED STATES REFRIGERATOR CAR FLOOR RACK Vinton E. Sisson, Winnetka, Ill., assignor, by

assignments, to Standard Railway Equipment Manufacturing Company, a corporation of Delaware Application June 17,

5 Claims.

The invention relates to insulated railway refrigerator cars used to transport perishable commodities, such as vegetables, fruits, berries, meats, eggs, frozen fish, etc., and to maintain such commodities while in transit within a predetermined range of temperature, thus necessitating the use of acooling means in the summer and a heating means in the winter. It has been found that perishable commodities which have not been allowed to get too cold (freeze) or too hot -(bake) have a high market value because they have a longer storage life.

The invention relates specifically to "floor racks for such refrigerator cars which comprise a foraminous or perforated floor, arranged to support the lading in the car in spaced relation to the insulated floor of the car so that air, after it has been cooled by a refrigerant, or heated by a heater, may pass under the lading and through the foraminous floor and up through or between the lading.

Spaced apart wooden slats supported by wooden stringers have been used for this purpose, but such construction is objectionable because it becomes insanitary, retains odors, becomes water sogged and heavy, and is expensive to maintain.

The object of the invention is to provide a floor rack for a refrigerator car which is very strong to support vertical loads and has great strength in a horizontal direction (to resist the tendency of a shifting load to move the floor rack sidewise) without materially retarding the flow of air below the floor rack or materially reducing the amount of air flow through the floor rack.

Another object is to provide a floor rack made entirely of metal; is sanitary; cheap to maintain and provide a smooth surface for walking upon and rolling trucks thereupon.

Another object is to provide a foraminous floor supported entirely by perforated spools so that air may circulate through the foraminous floor, through and between the spools, and another object is to provide means to adjust the height of such foraminous floor fromthe floor of the car.

Another object is to support such foraminous floor by a plurality of duplicate spools which can be stored in anticipation of repairs.

Another object of the invention is to reinforce the metallic plate of the floor rack disclosed in Bonsall application No. 130,855, filed March 5, 1937, by providing stiffening means extending between adjacent spacers, which stiffening means form beams between the supporting spacers, and to form such stifieners in the metallic sheet so that they will not project above the floor rack,

1937, Serial No. 148,690

and wherein the stiflieners are formed and associated with the supporting spacers to provide gutters to carry off water and debris through the hollow parts of the spacers to the space below the floor rack. I

Another object of the invention is to provide such stiffening means by forming stiffening corrugations in the metallic sheet and to associate the corrugated plate with the supporting spacers so that the ends of the stiffening corrugations, m and also the edges of the metallic floor rack sheet adjacent the spacers, will be supported by the spacers.

, In the drawing:

Fig. 1 shows the application of my device to a railway refrigerator car.

Fig. 2 is a plan view of part of my floor rack.

Fig. 3 is a section on line 3-3 of Fig. 2.

Fig. 4 is a perspective view of one of my spacers which support the apertured plate from the floor.

Fig. 1 shows a typical railway refrigerator car having roof 2, floor 3, end wall 4 and doorway5. The bunker 6 separates the refrigerant chamber I from the lading compartment and is provided with a grate 9 for supporting ice (for cooling the air) or a stove (for warming the air). The floor rack I0 provides a space II between the lading I2 and the floor 3. Air being cooled by the refrigerant descends into the space II and rising upwardly through apertures in the floor rack and through or between the'lading I2, and being warmed thereby, returns through the opening I3 above the bulkhead to the refrigerant chamber. This air movement is indicated by arrows. When a stove is used for heating the air, of course, the direction of the circulation is reversed. This convection circulation of air is repeated.

The floor rack comprises a perforated or other wise apertured metallic plate I4 and a plurality of spacers I5 secured to the plate (preferably by welding) which engage the floor 3 of the refrigerator car to provide a space II for movement of air under the load from the refrigerant chamber or heater chamber.

Each spacer I5 (see Fig. 4) comprises a perforated wall I! surrounding a hollow portion I8, which hollow portion registers with an aperture I9 in the metallic plate I4 so that horizontally moving air underthe floor racks may enter the hollow portion I8 of the spacer I5 through the perforations and thence upwardly through the aperture I9. The perforations 20 are preferably positioned on the side of the upper wall I! from which the air is coming which is, generally speaking, that side which is nearest the refrigerant chamber 1.

The perforated wall I! of each spacer is preferably cylindrical and provided with an upper lateral peripheral flange 2| secured to the apertured plate. The spacer is also provided with a lateral peripheral flange 24 providing a base which rests upon the floor 3 of the car. This lateral flange is formed with depressions. The upper lateral flange 2| stiffens the metallic plate around the aperture [9 both in vertical and horizontal directions. The lower lateral flange 24 stifiens the lower portion of the spacer l5 against horizontal forces and also increases the bearing area of the spacers upon the floor of the car and the depressions in the lower flange 24 provide further means for air circulation and also allow for drainage. Other apertures 21 may be provided in the metallic plate between the apertures l9 registering with the respective hollows l8 of the spacers to increase the permissible air movement through the metallic plate.

The metallic plate is formed with preferably depressed corrugations 30 which extend between adjacent apertures I9 in the metallic plate and merge into said apertures 19 to form gutters therebetween. These corrugations are beams between the spacers which also function as columns. When the upper peripheral flange 2| is used the depending corrugations 30'nest in and are preferably secured to the depressions 3! in the flange 2!.

The stiffening corrugations are preferably diagonally disposed relative to the walls of the car for easier walking and so that hand trucks will run easier on the plate.

The lower flange is preferably also formed with depressions 31 for drainage and so that both ends will be alike.

The accompanying drawing illustrates the preferred form of the invention, though it is to be understood that the invention is not limited to the exact details of construction shown and described, as it is obvious that various modifications thereof, within the scope of the claims, will occur to persons skilled in the art.

I claim:

1. In a refrigerator car having parallel side walls, a floor rack comprising a metallic plate having apertures therein and a plurality of spacers secured thereto which engage the floor of the car, each of said spacers comprising a perforated wall surrounding a hollow portion, said plate provided with depressed stiffening corrugations extending between adjacent spacers and merging into said apertures to form gutters therebetween, said stiffening corrugations being diagonally disposed relative to said side walls for the purpose specified.

2. In a refrigerator car, the combination of an insulated floor, a foraminous floor, a plurality of spacers supporting the foraminous floor above the insulated floor to provide a space between said floors, and means to induce an air current in said space, said foraminous floor comprising a metallic plate having apertures therein and each of said spacers comprising a perforated wall surrounding a hpllo-w portion registering with an aperture in said plate, said plate provided with depressed stiffening corrugations merging into said apertures to form gutters therebetween.

3. In a refrigerator car, the combination of an insulated floor, a foraminous floor, a plurality of spacers supporting the foraminous floor above the insulated floor to provide a space between said floors, and means to induce an air current in said space, said foraminous floor comprising a metallic plate having apertures therein and each of said spacers comprising a perforated wall surrounding a hollow portion registering with an aperture in said plate, some of said spacers having an upper lateral peripherical flange secured to said plate and formed with depressions therein, said plate provided with depressed stiffening corrugations extending between adjacent spacers and nesting in said depressions, said corrugations merging into said apertures to form gutters therebetween.

4. In a refrigerator car, the combination of an insulated floor, a foraminous floor, a plurality of spacers supporting, the foraminous floor above the insulated floor to provide a space between said floors, and means to induce an air current in said space, said foraminous floor comprising a metallic plate having apertures therein and each of said spacers comprising a perforated wall surrounding a hollow portion registering with an aperture in said plate, said plate provided with depressed stifiening corrugations extending between adjacent spacers merging into saidapertures to form gutters therebetween, said -metallic plate provided with other apertures between said corrugations.

5. In a refrigerator car, the combination of an insulated floor, a foraminous floor, a plurality .of spacers supporting the foraminous floor above the insulated floor to provide a space between said floors, and means to induce an air current in said space, said foraminous floor comprising a metallic plate provided with a plurality of rows of apertures, said plate being supported by a plurality of rows of spacers, each of said spacers comprising a perforated wall surrounding a hollow portion registering with one of said aper- VINTON E. SISSON. 

